The chances of winning Wednesday night’s Powerball drawing, an estimated jackpot of $500 million as of Tuesday, is one in 175,223,510.

Compared to that, getting struck by lightning in one’s lifetime (one in 10,000), hitting a deer with your car in Hawaii (one in 6,000) and dating a supermodel (one in 88,000) seem downright inevitable.

However, residents across New Jersey and 41 other states turned out Tuesday, undaunted by the odds, to purchase their tickets for a chance at what could be the largest prize in the game’s history.

“We’re selling a lot, I think the most tickets of any store in the area,” said Yogi Darji, owner of the store, which enjoyed a steady stream of chance takers buying multiple tickets throughout the day. “I bought a ticket, too, for myself — you have to when it’s this big.”

Monroe Harrel, from Williamstown, said he stops in to Yogi's to buy lottery tickets once or twice per week.

He felt lucky, but not unbelievably so.

“I don’t feel $425 million lucky, but I feel like maybe a secondary winner,” he said. “I feel like maybe a $100,000 winner.”

Ron Watkins, from Turnersville, said he had no illusions about his chances, but still felt it was worth the $2 ticket price for a shot at the enormous prize.

“It only takes $2 to win,” said Watkins, adding that he plays the same numbers he had seen in a dream after leaving the Marine Corps in 1988 for each drawing.

“They could be my lucky numbers, but they haven’t been too lucky since I haven’t won,” he said with a laugh.

In Cumberland County, Lois Larocca, a ShopRite employee in Vineland, said she had sold tickets to well over a hundred people from 7 a.m. to noon on Tuesday.

Many were buying $20 or more in tickets.

“[Wednesday] is going to be crazy, since it’s the same day as the drawing,” she said, adding that sales have been similar to those for large Powerball or Mega Millions jackpots in the past. “I only play when it’s big; it’s worth the $2.”

If she won, she said she would buy a new house, a new car and a vacation house.

Kumar Sah and Raju Pokhrel work at the former Sunoco on Griffiths Street, in Salem, and reported a sharp increase in Powerball purchases. They have sold winning tickets in the past — including a $50,000 prize from a $2 scratch-off — and are hoping to sell the lucky winning ticket this round.

If they won, they both said they would retire.

Dale Smith, from Alloway Township, buying a ticket in Salem, said he's a regular lottery player.

“If I already won, I wouldn’t be buying this one,” he said.

Asked what he’d do if he hit the jackpot, Smith said he would be tempted to “buy the Eagles and hire a new coach.”

However, Smith added would he would most likely share his winnings with friends and family if he won.

Either way, Andy Reid can probably rest easy — the chances of Smith winning the jackpot are worse than the Eagles head coach hitting back-to-back holes in one (one in 156,000,000) in the next off-season.